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Lot 1065

LONGEST RUNNING SHOWS ON BROADWAY.
Archive of Lightnin, August 26, 1918-August 27, 1921; Abie's Irish Rose, May 23, 1922-October 1, 1927; Tobacco Road, December 4, 1933-May 31, 1941; and Fiddler On The Roof, September 22, 1964-July 2, 1972.

6 – 13 December 2018, 10:00 EST
New York

US$800 - US$1,200

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LONGEST RUNNING SHOWS ON BROADWAY.

Archive of Lightnin, August 26, 1918-August 27, 1921; Abie's Irish Rose, May 23, 1922-October 1, 1927; Tobacco Road, December 4, 1933-May 31, 1941; and Fiddler On The Roof, September 22, 1964-July 2, 1972. Two vols. comprising Anne Nichols' scrapbook of clippings commemorating the 2000th performance of Abie's Irish Rose, January 12, 1927; and a binder of playbills, flyers, souvenir booklets and sheet music for the other shows. Various sizes and generally fine condition.

Although forgotten today, Lightnin was a light rural comedy that survived an amazing record-breaking 1,291th performance on Broadway. Will Rogers starred in the talking version. Breaking Lightnin's record, Anne Nichols' wildly popular Abie's Irish Rose played on the urban rivalry of the Irish and Jews in its humorous updating of Romeo and Juliet. The notorious play of Tobacco Road taken from Erskine Caldwell's bestselling novel was often banned for its overt sexuality and yet it stayed on Broadway for 3,182 performances. "The theatre has never sheltered a fouler or more degenerate parcel of folks than the hardscrabble family of Lester," wrote Brooks Atkinson in the New York Times. Perhaps the most interesting material in this archive is for the much beloved and often revived Fiddler on the Roof including a 1969 playbill with a young Bette Midler as "Tzeitel."

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